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Wheel Loss
What is the problem?
Loose wheels on vehicles are extremely dangerous ? if a wheel becomes detached at
speed it can hit an oncoming vehicle or pedestrian with incredible force. It could also
cause the vehicle which has lost the wheel to crash.
It is estimated that runaway wheels kill 10 people and injure many more each year in
the UK. [1]
Why does it happen?
There are several reasons why a wheel can become detached from a vehicle:

If the studs and bolts become loose or break

Incorrect torquing ? the clamping force between the stud and nut and the
wheel. Wheel loss can result from overtightening as well as insufficient
tightening.

The use of incorrect components (not all wheel fixings and wheels are
compatible)

Poor condition and quality of components [2]

Case studies
The following case studies give an indication of the tragedies that can occur when
wheels come loose.
Woman killed by trailer wheel
Doris Smith, 84, from Rochford, Essex, was walking a neighbours dog when a wheel
came off a trailer and careered into her on 11 July 2005. She was badly injured and died
in hospital a few hours later. A man was arrested on suspicion of causing death by
dangerous driving [3]
Wheel crashes into car, killing woman
Lesley Hadley, 39, from Walton-on-the-Hill, near Stafford, was killed on 7 June 2006 in
a crash on the A50 when a skip lorry heading in the opposite direction lost a wheel,
which then bounced across the central reservation into her car. [4] Peter Ashworth, HM
Coroner for Derby and South Derbyshire, who conducted the inquest into Lesleys
death, heard expert evidence that rust between two fixed rear nearside wheels on the
skip lorry caused them to move and work loose. Both wheels came off and one caused
Lesleys death. He has since obtained information into other fatal cases and is calling
for the Department of Transport to introduce regulations and promote use of safety
devices which might prevent future tragedies.[5]
Woman killed by wheel on M62
Jacqueline Theresa Suzanne Robinson, 54, was killed after a runaway wheel smashed
into her car on the M62 in July 2006. The wheel came off a trailer carrying a speedboat
and bounced across the carriageway into her path. Police said the wheel landed on the
bonnet of her car with such force it peeled off the roof. Jacqueline died at the scene of
the crash from her head injuries. [6]
Woman killed on pavement
In October 2004, Jeanette Bedford, a mother of five from Lostwithiel, in Cornwall, was
killed instantly when she was hit by a wheel that had come loose from a lorry, as she
walked along the pavement beside the A390. A verdict of accidental death was recorded
on the 44-year-old when the inquest into Jeanettes death failed to establish why there
was a failure of the bearing in the front wheel of the truck. [7] However, a public
inquiry in Bristol was told that although Joyners Plants Ltd, the haulage firm running
the lorry, had been exonerated of blame in the fatal crash, its vehicles did not receive
regular maintenance checks. Traffic commissioner Philip Brown heard the firm had
failed in almost every aspect to keep to the terms of its goods vehicle licence and
drivers were not reporting defects on their vehicles. Brown cut the firms operators
licence from 16 vehicles to eight for a month, and said the firm would need to pass an

inspection by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) before the licence
restrictions could be lifted. [8]
*Truck loses two wheels and kills pensioner *
Pensioner Hilda Weston, from East Sussex, died on 20 October 2006?when a wheel
flew off a 32-ton-lorry and hit her as she waited at a bus stop. It was the second wheel to
be lost from the tipper truck ? less than a mile earlier an outer wheel flew off into a field
but the driver, Mark Stansfield, said he hadnt noticed because of the noise of the lorry.
The inner wheel then worked its way off and hit 83-year-old Mrs Weston in the chest.
Mr Stansfield said he carried out a visual check of the lorry on the morning he set out
but noticed no defects. An examination of the lorry after the incident revealed several of
the remaining wheel nuts were loose. The crash investigator said the best way to ensure
a tightened wheel nut was to use a torque wrench ? a tool he said some companies
shunned because of its price. Mr Stansfield said he had never used one in 20 years and
had never been shown how to use one. A verdict of accidental death was recorded. [9]
Man killed when van collides with detached wheel
In February 2001, driver Kevin Jago was killed when a detached wheel from a truck
collided with a van, sending the van veering out of control across the M2, where it
struck Kevins van head on. Two days before the crash, the wheel had been removed to
allow maintenance work to be carried out on the vehicles brakes. A forensic expert
concluded that?this was likely to have led to the wheel assemblies becoming detached.
[10]
How can wheel loss be prevented?
The Department for Transport recommends that any nuts, studs or bolts purchased
comply with British Standard AU 50: Part 2 Section 7a: 1995 for commercial vehicles,
or with British Standard AU 50: Part 2 Section 8a: 1985 for cars, to ensure they are of
high quality.
The Society of Operations Engineers provides the following guidance to drivers of
commercial vehicles on carrying out maintenance checks:
1. Establish any causes of wear and damage on loose nuts before re-tightening
2. Keep adjoining surfaces clean and preferably free of paint
3. Ensure that nuts run freely over the whole length of the stud thread by hand
action only
4. Final tightening must be with a calibrated torque wrench set to the vehicle
manufacturers torque value
5. Power operated tools and extensions to wheel braces should not be used for final
tightening

6. All wheel nuts must be re-checked for tightness after 30 minutes whether the
vehicle has moved or not OR after the vehicle has travelled between 25 to 50
miles
7. When re-torquing, nuts should not be slackened and re-tightened, but simply retightened to the recommended torque
8. Commercial drivers should inspect tyres at the start of each shift for signs of
damage, under inflation, cracked or distorted wheel rims, broken or loose
fixings, signs of wheel looseness
9. If drivers check for loose nuts it should be with a socket and a bar no longer than
500mm to avoid over-tightening [11]
Although there is a considerable amount of advice available for drivers of commercial
vehicles, there is a distinct lack of advice for the general public on carrying out checks
and looking out for loose wheel nuts.
Brake advises drivers to keep a look out for:

Rust or bright metal around the wheel nut

Cracked or distorted wheel rims

Broken or loose fixings

The position of wheel nut indicator devices (if you have them), which can
indicate if wheel nuts have moved

These checks should be carried out alongside other essential checks such as checking
tyre pressure and tread depth. The RAC and Green Flag websites contain information on
the regular maintenance checks that should be carried out.
*What additional safety devices are available to prevent wheel loss? *
A number of companies have produced safety devices designed to help keep wheel nuts
tight or visually indicate if nuts are becoming loose.
Wheelsure Wheelsure has developed a wheel nut locking device that prevents wheel
loss caused by vibration nut loosening. The device uses a modified wheel stud and a
patented counter-threaded locking cap that covers the wheel nut, holding it in place.
Because the device does not interfere with the original nut, it maintains maximum
clamp force. In the event of the wheel nut starting to loosen, the spring loaded cap
tightens against the nut, locking it firmly into place, and maintaining wheel security.
Suitable for use on both HGVs and PSVs, the device has also been developed to ensure
bolt security in the rail industry. Winner of Brakes Vehicle Safety Invention Award in
2004, Wheelsures product was also Highly Commended at the Vehicles and Plant
Awards 2005 in the Developments in New Technology category and won Best
Technical Development 2005 at the UK Bus Awards.

Other devices are also available from:

Disc-Lock ? The Disc-Lock Safety Wheel Nut, is an award-winning, heavy-duty
locking nut, which eliminates the possibility of lost wheels from HGVs and buses. It
was introduced in the UK in 1995 and since then has been fitted and specified by many
leading truck and bus operators including ASDA, Sainsburys, Ford Europe, Biffa,
Cleanaway, Arriva and Stagecoach, as well as council and fire brigade fleets.The nut is
split into three sections comprising a nut, a hexagon-flanged washer and a flat faced cup
washer: the top two sections have interlocking cams. When subjected to vibration the
interlocking cams attempt to rise against each other. As the angle of the cam is greater
than the pitch angle of the thread on the stud a wedging action takes place causing the
Disc-Lock Safety Wheel Nut to maintain the clamping-force and to lock, thus
maintaining the wheel secure on the axle.
Business Lines ? loose nut indicators for commercial vehicles
However, Brake advises that these devices should be used as additional measures and
must not replace regular vehicle maintenance and checks.
What is the Government doing to prevent wheel loss?
The Department for Transport has contracted TRL to investigate incidents of wheel
detachment from heavy vehicles. The results of the investigation were published in
October and are be available on the TRL website.
Brake welcomes the results of this investigation, but urges the Government to carry out
research into wheel loss in general, not just in relation to heavy vehicles. It is essential
that the general public is made more aware of wheel loss and given Government advice
on ways to prevent it from happening.
Sources of further information
Business Lines
Department for Transport
Disc-Lock
Society of Operations Engineers
TRL
Wheelsure

[1] Lost wheels, lost lives ? a report on lost wheels from commercial vehicles and
resulting fatalities?and injuries (Brake, 1996)
[2] Wheel Loss ? No longer a mystery (Society of Operators Engineers)

[3] Tributes to woman killed by trailer wheel, (This is Essex, 15.07.05)

[4] Swim medallist killed by rogue wheel (Uttoxeter Advertiser, 07.06.05)
[5] Information from Peter Ashworth, HM Coroner for Derby and South Derbyshire
(2006)
[6] Woman killed by wheel is named, (BBC News, 14.07.06)
[7] Accidental verdict in wheel death, (BBC News, 07.07.05)
[8] Lorry crash firm has licence cut, (BBC News, 01.02.06)
[9] Woman was killed by flying truck wheel (The Argus, 13.06.06)
[10] icnorthernireland.co.uk, 29.01.04
[11] Guide to Wheel Security, (Society of Operational Engineers)
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